Posted January 2024
In support of National Mentoring Month, we’re shining a spotlight on amazing Terrier mentoring stories. If you want to mentor a Terrier, volunteer on BU Connects!
Mimi and David’s mentoring relationship started in early 2023, and one year later, their relationship is stronger than ever! Through the College of Engineering alumni and student mentorship program, these two Terriers found within each other the people they didn’t know were missing in their lives. Mimi found a professional and established engineer to look up to, and David found a young and ambitious student to help and guide. Though the program was only designed to last one semester, Mimi and David’s partnership was so rewarding that they continue meeting and keeping in touch to this day.
Miriam “Mimi” Bounar (ENG’24), a first-generation student and first-generation immigrant who studies Biomedical Engineering, joined the ENG Mentors program on BU Connects on a whim, looking for an opportunity to forge a real and significant relationship with an engineer. As the first in her family to go to college as well as the first to pursue engineering, Mimi often felt she lacked a figure to look up to and go to for guidance when it came to her professional aspirations. Mimi was hoping to find “someone who knows how to respond, how to act, what type of opportunities to look for, and then go on from there.”
Unbeknownst to Mimi, her luck was just starting. After joining the program, Mimi was paired with David Festa (ENG’94), a Manufacturing Engineering major and Mechanical Engineering minor who now works for Thermo Fisher Scientific as Director of Corporate Quality. David would prove to be just who Mimi was seeking. Having been exposed to mentoring roles through his company’s internal mentorship program, when David received a message through BU Connects about the opportunity to mentor an Engineering student, he felt it was his chance to find and form a connection with a student who “had the motivation to go forward” and whom he could provide with insights into the business world.
Mimi says that David’s mentorship has had a huge impact on both her academic and professional careers. Having someone to discuss the nitty gritty of her career pursuits has been crucial to navigating her first internship interview, choosing classes for upcoming semesters, and dealing with professional relationships at work. Mimi says David would “make me feel more comfortable, and it felt really nice to have someone to listen and also provide feedback from a different perspective.” For David, mentoring Mimi has been a way to give back to BU, especially to the College of Engineering, and feel connected to his alma mater again.
Mimi and David’s relationship proved so fruitful that they decided to continue their meetings even after the end of the program last Spring. David explains that the relationship grew so organically that it just made sense for them to continue to stay in touch. Through this program, both mentor and mentee found the person they were looking for – a dedicated student willing to learn, and a passionate professional excited to share his career wisdom with the next generation.
To learn more about ENG Mentors and get involved, contact the Engineering Career Development Office at engcareers@bu.edu.
Have you made a meaningful connection through BU Connects? We want to hear about it!